Give It Wings
by Hannibal3125
Summary: ME2 - Possible spoilers. Ash gets a response to her message to Shepard after Horizon.
1. Give It Wings

A/N: Okay, a few things to start out with – 1)any references to "Jack" in this story refer to Shepard – this is my character that I named eight or so months ago while playing ME1, before I knew any of the characters in ME2. 2) Paragon, Spacer, War Hero, romance with Ashley Williams and staying with her. Any relevant details I missed should become clear in the story. 3) This is set just after the end of ME2's story.

Disclaimer: I don't own…(snore)…uh, yeah, you get the idea. You honestly think I'd be writing fanfiction if I owned it?

Give It Wings

Ashley Williams, Operations Chief, Systems Alliance Marine Corps, woke up five minutes before her alarm was due to chime, as usual. She immediately began her daily routine the same way she had for the past week of this leave – by laying in bed, staring at the dark ceiling, wishing that the last two years had really been a horrible dream.

It had very nearly taken a direct order to get her to take the two weeks' leave given her after the Horizon Event, as some paper-pusher with a lousy sense of humor had christened it. She'd taken it a month after Horizon, after realizing that her emotional state was still too erratic after seeing _him_ again.

Jack Shepard. A commander in the Alliance. The first human Spectre.

The man she loved with every fiber in her heart.

The alarm interjected with its controlled radio burst. She reached over, shut the unit off, and, after a moment's hesitation, grabbed the datapad she'd left on the night stand. She'd received its contents the second day of her leave and had read it repeatedly every day.

Her eyes took a moment to focus on the text, but the words on the display were unnecessary – she'd long since committed them to memory….

* * *

TO: Williams, Ashley M.

FROM: Shepard, Jonathan T.

Ash,

I'm sorry that I took so long to reply to your message. Recently, I've been busy helping the squad I've assembled make peace and tie up loose ends in their pasts. It occurred to me that I should do the same.

Since I can't risk seeing you face-to-face for this, I'll say it all this way.

I know you probably still think I've betrayed the Alliance by working with Cerberus, but hear me out. A few weeks before we crossed paths on Horizon, I went back to the Citadel to speak with Anderson and the Council. They did nothing but give me a token – I was reinstated as a Spectre. All that means in a case like this is that I've got my "do whatever I want and get away with it" badge. Anderson wouldn't even authorize a single ship to come out here with me. So I had to do whatever I could to stop this threat. And that meant Cerberus. Now, you're likely still skeptical, so I've attached a whole mess of data we've found that shows that the Council has their collective heads up where no sun shines on all this. I sent a copy to Hackett at Alliance Command and to Anderson; hopefully, it'll open their eyes, so we can stop the Reapers.

Well, now that I got all that out of my system…

I have to tell you the most important stuff. The reason I can't say it in person is that one of two things will happen: either (a) you'll slap me, hit me, or somehow inflict a great deal of pain on my person, or (b) you'd demand to come with me. And I can't let you do that.

I know – you'll do whatever you want anyway. But I'm actually glad you can't follow me into this storm. There's every possibility that I won't come out on the other side. I want you to survive, even if I don't.

I'm also sorry for not letting you know I was alive. I don't know if Anderson told you, but I tried to track you down. Even Cerberus couldn't get their slimy claws into where you were; it left me torn between wanting to get in touch with you and feeling glad that at least some Alliance data is still safe. Anderson and the Alliance wouldn't tell me anything, either. But all that wasn't the only reason.

Another reason was … I was afraid. I was told that two whole years had passed since my last memory, and I was afraid. I feared that you'd died or perhaps moved on and forgotten about me. I was afraid that you had let what we had die with me on the frontier. I was afraid to find that you'd found a man truly worthy of you (and who could handle you) and were happy without me. I was afraid that if all that was true, that I'd ruin your happiness by returning.

Your happiness is what matters. I'd be lying if I said that I'm doing this for a bunch of people who are too busy hating each other's genes and species to look out for their fellow beings. Let the galaxy think that. The truth is that I'm doing this for you, Ash. I'm doing this for my mother, for your mother, for your sisters. But mostly, I'm doing this for you. I'm doing this for the woman I love.

Yes, Ash, I still love you. And if I die, I'll die loving you. How could I not?! After all we went through, I could never turn from you. Our relationship might have started with geth shooting at us and with debates about aliens on our ship, but it took only a couple weeks and a few missions to find common ground in our faith and in places we'd trained. And that connection grew right up until the Collectors destroyed the Normandy.

I've missed you this whole time, Ash. I'd hoped it would be easier to deal with your absence by spending time with Garrus and Tali, but all that did was remind me that you were not here with me.

And now we get to "making peace" part. I can understand if you delete this and never want to see or hear from me again. If you want to actually move on this time. If that's your wish, I'll accept it.

I was able to draw the love you feel out by showing you love and care. Now, to make peace and be ready for this, I have to stop holding on so tightly. I have to be willing to let you go.

I love you, Ashley Madeline Williams. I miss you. And now, I'm saying goodbye to you.

Forever Yours,

Jack

"The quickest way to receive love is to give it; the fastest way to lose it is to hold too tightly; and the best way to keep it is to give it wings."


	2. Always Yours

A/N: For those who think that in this story, I deal with Anderson rather harshly, let me just say that I was very negatively impressed with his inability to do anything to help when I played through ME2.

Dedication: This story is written for all those who, like me, felt supremely cheated by BioWare for staying faithful through this game. All I have to say is that there had better be a _really _good payout in ME3 for hanging on and sticking it out.

Ch 2 – Always Yours

Ash finished reading and began to pray, largely to clear the tears from her eyes. This was the next item in her daily routine and usually lasted for five or so minutes, so she was rather surprised when someone began pounding on her door after less than a minute.

"Ash! Come on out! I'd like to spend some sister time _before_ the sun goes nova!" Sarah, the youngest Williams sister, was very lively and considered it her duty to make certain that Ash had fun whenever she visited.

Ash rolled her eyes as she reached over to the window controls and allowed sunlight to enter the room, giving her a nice view of Amaterasu. "Coming, Sar! Give me a minute to get dressed. Oh, and get me a glove, please."

She listened until she was reasonably convinced that Sarah was gone, then rose and walked to the small closet in the corner of the room. Opening the closet door revealed a number of possibilities for casual wear. Ash briefly debated grabbing some fatigues, but knew that her mother would give her one of her patented stern looks of disapproval. Ash could already hear the lecture. _"Ashley Madeline Williams, you are on leave. Act like it. Dress like it. That means the military clothes stay stored until you go back."_

Well, that wasn't high on Ash's to-do list. She considered shocking everyone and borrowing a skirt from one of her sisters, but quickly rejected the idea in favor of a comfortable shirt and a pair of jeans. She opened the door, rounded the corner at the end of the hallway, and headed downstairs. The noise from the kitchen sounded a bit odd, she thought just before entering.

Lynn handed her a cup of coffee, only daring to say even "Good morning" after Ash had taken a sip. Ash nodded and stepped to the stove, first to give her mother a quick hug, then to make some eggs that hadn't had to be reconstituted from a powder. Good food had to be one of the things she'd missed on the shipboard assignments she'd been landing since her assignment to the Normandy.

"Ash, think fast!" Sarah's voice caused Ash to turn around…right into the glove that smacked her in the face. She thanked her sister, finished making her breakfast, and set it on the counter as she pulled the interface-feedback glove on so she could interact with her family's new comm unit.

This too was part of her morning ritual. The day after she'd received Jack's message, she'd composed a reply.

* * *

TO: Shepard, Jonathan T.

FROM: Williams, Ashley M.

Hey, Jack

I did some checking (and, as a result, some probably insubordinate yelling) with Anderson and found you DID try to find me, and that neither the Council nor the Alliance did squat to help you. So, I'm sorry that I chewed you out over not getting in touch with me sooner.

I've missed you, too. And despite every attempt I ever made to move on, I couldn't.

I guess I have a bit of a confession. I was still shell-shocked when I wrote the last message. Literally. The brass almost had to order me to take leave after Horizon. I was snapping at everyone, getting distracted from my duties.

Who would have thought that you would shake me up so much after two whole years?

So, I'm back home with my family. You probably remember where…anyway, I've done a lot of thinking and reached some conclusions.

The first is that no matter how much we may have changed, we are still the same people deep down, where it matters. The changes are simply a part of life. They don't mean we can't be together.

The second was related. I still love you, too. I tried to fool myself into thinking that I didn't, that we were too different now, or …whatever. I was lying to myself.

And now I wish I had gone with you. So that, if you don't come back again, then at least, we'd buy it together. And before you say anything about me turning fatalistic again, let me just say that I'd doing everything I could to keep from either of us buying it at all.

By the way, I am so jealous! Garrus and Tali are back with you? I haven't seen them in ages! Did you find any of the others from the old days? Tell them to take care of you, since I'm not there to do it myself.

Barring that, at least come back to me. I've let you go too many times. Please, return to me, so I can return to you.

Always yours,

Ash

"If you love somebody, let them go. If they return, they were always yours. If they don't, they never were."

* * *

She'd tried to transmit it that day, only to be informed that the comm buoy network couldn't find his terminal. This made no sense. Even in the Terminus Systems, she should have been able to reach him. She'd wondered if he'd gone on that mission to chase down the Collectors. When a rather penitent Anderson had explained what Shepard had told him about this being a suicide mission, her heart had nearly stopped.

Unfortunately, going after the Collectors was (a) just like Jack Shepard to do, and (b) entirely fitting in with not being able to reach him through the comm lines.

She had begun resending the message every morning. For the past week, she resent the message and checked for responses from Shepard before eating breakfast every day. So far, nothing. Today's inbox check included an itinerary from Hannah Shepard. It still depressed her that her first meeting with Jack's mother was at his memorial service. Ash had invited the older woman to visit next leave she took. That next leave was now. So, Ma Shepard, as Ash had started calling her, was due to arrive for a visit today.

A snicker behind her alerted the marine to something out of the ordinary. She turned to find that her sisters and her mother were standing in front of the door to the guest room, just before a pair of hands clapped over her eyes. She wrestled loose and whirled to see who had ambushed her in this manner.

There before her was Hannah Shepard. Looking at her revealed many of the features those who knew Jack would easily recognize. Most obvious were the shape of her face and the red hair, in her case streaked heavily with gray. Ash knew from some of the pictures she'd seen that Jack's green eyes and strong build came from his father, who'd died in 2176, just weeks before the Blitz. Many found it tragic that the man had just missed his son's heroism. Ash knew better; Jack had once confided to her that he wouldn't have been at Elysium if his dad hadn't died.

Ash shook the thoughts away with a smile and stepped forward to hug Hannah. They held each other for a moment before Hannah held her at arm's length and looked at her. "Anything yet?" Hannah had heard a bit about this woman who'd gotten her son's attention. After learning of Jack's being alive after all, she'd hoped to hear of Ashley getting back together with him. Ashley's teary vid-mail had seemingly nixed that; an expensive real-time call had yielded up more information, including Ashley's message being sent.

Ash wordlessly handed the datapad she'd been carrying to the older woman, who read her son's words quickly before looking back to Ash with a sympathetic smile. Ash just silently went over to her breakfast, leaving Hannah to converse with her family. "Well, Marie, how's life for you?"

Ash quickly tuned the conversation out, glumly picking at her food. A chirp from the comm unit suddenly silenced the room as everyone stared at it. A second chirp pulled them back to reality as Ash darted to the controls and pressed the holographic "Accept" button. A message appeared in the display space.

* * *

TO: Williams, Ashley M.

FROM: Shepard, Jonathan T.

I will always return to you.

In fact, I'm going to do so really soon.

* * *

Ash read the message out loud to the crowd immediately behind her, then excitedly sent a reply.

* * *

TO: Shepard, Jonathan T.

FROM: Williams, Ashley M.

How soon?

* * *

The display informed her that her message was sent. Suddenly, a knock on the front door startled everyone.

"No way…" Abby said as Ash ran to the door.

A man was standing there, wearing the uniform of a local florist. He was holding a clipboard and a bouquet of beautiful red roses. "Hi, I've got a delivery for Ashley Williams from Jack Shepard." Ash took the flowers and thanked the deliveryman. She bowed her head into the bouquet and inhaled the scent deeply. The heavenly scent encouraged her to whisper a quick prayer for Jack's rapid return.

When she opened her eyes, her first thought was that her leave was going to extend into a stay at a psych ward. Her second was that if she'd ever wanted proof for her beliefs, she had it in the man standing by the public transport vehicle in front of her house.

Lynn was watching over Ash's shoulder, saw what Ash saw, and quickly grabbed the flowers before her older sister could drop them in her shock.

Jack walked toward her, looking slightly out-of-place in a black T-shirt and Fleet fatigue pants. He stopped on the step, waiting for Ash to snap back to reality. She did so a second later. He smiled and quietly asked, "Soon enough?"

She snickered and invited him inside. "Well, everyone, this is the famous Commander Jack Shepard I've been telling you about."

"You mean pining and mooning over." Sarah said matter-of-factly. Everyone else chuckled as Ash and Jack both blushed. Then the other non-Williams caught his attention.

"Mom?"

Hannah smiled at her son. "Long time, son. The Williams family and I met at your memorial service."

Marie Williams stepped forward after shooing Abby, Lynn, and Sarah back. "Hello, Jack. I've heard quite a bit about you. Don't worry; I don't believe most of it." She reached out and hugged Jack in a surprising gesture.

As they separated, Ash leaned over to whisper in his ear, "Good job. She approves of you."

Jack turned and glared at her in mock-disapproval.

Hannah finally was able to greet her only child with yet another hug. As she pulled back, she stuck something in his hand. Jack could tell by the feel that it was a ring, most likely _the _ring. The one Grandma and Grandpa Shepard had used. The one Dad had used when he proposed to a young Hannah Masters. Jack would have to think about it first. He was pretty sure that he wanted that, but wanted to take time, not get caught up in the moment.

Sarah could hold back any longer. "That's it?! No kiss or anything?!"

Ash was about to tell her sister that Jack wasn't one of public displays of affection when she felt herself suddenly fall backward, followed by a pair of lips on hers. Thankfully, she was able to collect her wits and respond. Then her wits needed collection again.

Jack picked her up out of the dip-kiss and turned with his arm around her waist to the stunned audience.

Hannah was the first to break the silence. "Well, it's fairly obvious you're glad to be back."

Ash spoke before he could. "And I am quite glad he is. I like having the man I love where I can keep an eye on him."

And amid the cheers and whoops that resulted, Ashley Williams and Jack Shepard kissed again.

When they broke for air, Jack whispered to her, "I love you, too. As I said before, I will always return to you."


	3. Stay

A/N: This is definitely the last chapter. I had to tweak the quote slightly to adjust for the setting. This chapter is also meant to wrap the story up in a way to tie in (hopefully) to ME3 when it comes out. Also, to avoid confusion, Subject Zero Jack will not be making any appearances in this story. "Jack" is still Jack Shepard. Lastly, this is not a songfic, and I don't own any part of _Goodbye Can Seem Forever_ from Disney's The Fox and the Hound. Hope you enjoy.

Ch 3 – Stay

Ashley Williams, Operations Chief, Systems Alliance Marine Corps, woke up five minutes before her alarm was due to chime, as usual. She immediately began her daily routine the same way she had for the past couple of days of this leave – by laying in bed, staring at the dark ceiling, marveling at the miraculous turn of events she'd experienced.

Against all odds, Jack Shepard had returned to her. And she had returned to him. She knew for a fact that her family was already working out loose plans for a wedding. _And Jack hasn't even popped the question yet._

She stretched and rose from the bed, hurriedly dressed, and dashed downstairs for breakfast. As she entered the room, she found her mother and sisters finishing their food, and Jack looking at a datapad while drinking some coffee. She fixed her own meal, then joined him at the table.

He flashed a quick smile at her before returning his attention to the datapad. A minute, and half of her eggs and bagel later, he placed the pad on the table and looked back at her. "Morning."

She smiled as she replied, "Yeah. The last one of my official leave."

He scowled at this and gestured to the datapad. "This message is a readiness report from Joker on the new Normandy. All systems are ready. They even cleared out most of the monitoring devices and Cerberus logos. Most of this is about the crew."

Ash nodded. "Since you more or less split with Cerberus, they all have to decide if they want to do the same."

"Exactly. Jacob and Miranda already resigned, back on the Collector station. The rest of the crew has apparently made their decisions. Some are going – a couple want to stay with Cerberus; more just want out after the trauma of being abducted and nearly melted into genetic sludge for making a Reaper. Many are staying."

Ash looked pensive for a moment. "So…this is the end of your leave, too."

Jack nodded grimly.

Ash thought for a brief second and continued, "Jack, why don't you stay with me?"

Jack sighed sadly. "Ash, even without a higher authority ordering me back out, I know the Reapers are on their way. I can't sit idle in the face of that."

Ash's smile matched the tone of his sigh. "I know. I just can't say goodbye to you anymore."

Before either could speak again, Marie Williams spoke up. "Ashley, if you could help me with the dishes?"

Uh oh. The only time the Williams girls were asked to help their mother with the breakfast dishes was when she had something she wanted to say to them.

As Ash rose to obey her mother, Jack watched and discreetly queued a message to arrive at the Williams family comm unit in a little while. Mrs. Williams had expected something like this and had told him to be ready to duck out if she called Ash to the kitchen.

Feeling rather guilty as he did so, Jack stood and left for the room he'd been using to grab his gear. He quietly stepped through the front door, hailed a cab, and returned to the spaceport. Upon arriving, he headed to the small shuttle pad area used by the crews of ships that were too large to enter the atmosphere and dock at the spaceport.

Jack passed through the security station and proceeded to Pad 4. He was almost to the shuttle when he noticed the second of the Normandy's two Kodiaks a couple of pads farther down the line. He shrugged and stepped up to his shuttle's hatch. As it opened, he found Miranda and Jacob waiting for him. He shook his head at the sight; it was still odd to see them in uniforms entirely devoid of Cerberus insignia.

Miranda was speaking over a radio link; Shepard focused on her end of the conversation. "Very well; Shuttle 2 is departing from Pad 7 in an hour; please be ready by then, and we'll see you on the Normandy."

Shepard quirked his eyebrow at the exchange; Jacob noticed. "Just finalizing some new recruits; here's the files we've got so far."

"One or two files are still missing, but those are late joiners." Miranda added.

As they flew, Shepard reviewed the personnel files of the new crew members. He'd finished all but one by the time they set down in the main hold. "Very good. Page me when they show up; I'd like to meet them."

Miranda nodded as he walked toward the lift. As he neared it, the door opened to admit Tali and a few others laden with a few things. He joined them in the lift and asked what the gear was.

Tali shifted a little before answering, "Supplies. Miranda sent a few suggestions regarding crew living arrangements ahead; we're implementing them."

"Oh?" Jack thought back. Yes, he'd noticed Miranda tapping something into her omni-tool, but hadn't given it much thought. Until now. "Like what?"

Tali's behavior struck his memory; he'd seen it somewhere, in a setting that he'd regarded as not friendly. "Well…uh…simply rearranging a few people." The door opened, revealing Deck 3 and Tali's escape route.

The lift had already resumed its journey to his quarters when he recalled seeing Admiral Shala'Raan on the Rayya shifting in a similar manner…shortly before revealing knowledge she'd kept hidden. Shepard shook his head. He doubted Tali could even keep a secret like that.

Jack stepped over to his desk and slumped into the chair. His eyes automatically gravitated to the picture of Ash. The sound system in the quarters was set to play songs from vids from the late 20th through the late 21st centuries. One song started playing. He grimaced – it seemed eerily appropriate.

_I remember_

_Such a short time ago_

_How you showed up_

_Needing me so…_

He flashed back to Eden Prime, and their first meeting, when he'd rushed in to help her fight off some geth…

_And out of our pain_

_Our happiness grew,_

_And I realized_

_I needed you, too…_

The time Udina had grounded them at the Citadel came to mind…

_I remember_

_How we used to play…_

Mission after mission played before his mind's eye…

_I remember_

_Those rainy days…_

Kaidan Alenko's death on Virmire…

_The fire's glow…_

The night before Ilos…

_And now I find_

_We're both alone…_

_Goodbye can seem forever,_

_Farewell is like the end._

_But in my heart's the memory,_

_And there, you'll always be._

He sat like that for a while. Suddenly, the intercom chirped. "Joker here, Commander. Just letting you know we've left orbit and will be hitting the relay in about an hour. Also, Miranda said to tell you that the –"

"Never mind, Joker; I'm here. I'll tell him in person." The voice behind him made him jump rather high. He turned to find Miranda standing in the entryway next to EDI's holo-podium. She continued, "The new recruits are waiting for you in the main hold.

Jack thanked her and stood, making his way toward the door. Just as he reached it, she spoke again. "You know, Shepard, when I talked to my sister on Illium, she tried to convince me to quit Cerberus and stay with her. One thing she told me was a saying - 'The kindest, most endearing word in the galaxy: stay."

Shepard's voice hardened along with his expression. "Thank you, Ms. Lawson, but I'd like you to butt out of my personal life. Especially since I know that you know what's coming. And that I can't stay when I can do something about that threat." The Spectre didn't wait for a reply as he stepped into the lift and immediately pressed the button for the main hold. A second later, he sighed heavily and redirected the lift back to Deck 1 to allow Miranda to come down, too.

The door opened to reveal a rather bemused Miranda. She silently stepped in and waited. Shepard almost pushed the button again before catching his hand and turning toward her. "Look, Miranda, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you like I did."

Miranda smiled weakly. "Trust me, I do understand. I'm …sorry, too. I shouldn't have tried to stick my nose where it doesn't belong." The expression of having steel needles pulled through her cheeks faded into another smile. "I guess old habits die hard."

Shepard snickered at the limp joke as he pushed the button. When the door opened next, It showed Jacob and the other ground team members already there, along with several faces Jack didn't recognize.

He stepped out and gave a quick speech welcoming them to the Normandy. Then Jacob began to read off each name, allowing each to step forward and salute their new CO. Jack crisply returned each salute and shook their hands.

Finally, Jacob reached the last name on the list. "And our last volunteer…Williams, Ashley."

Jack noticed that the ground team members were huddled around one spot. They now parted to reveal Ash, standing there in her armor, with a large grin on her face.

She stepped forward. "You know, by all rights, I really should slap you for the way you left, my mom's idea or not." Then she pulled him into a tight hug. He returned the embrace with equal fervor.

After a moment, she stepped back to continue. "I already told my mom this, and now I'm telling you – staying with me doesn't mean we have to stay dirtside. We can stay together even on a mission like this. And I am staying-"

She was cut off by Jack Shepard catching her chin and pulling her into a kiss that could be described only as breathtaking.

Up on the bridge, Joker watched the video feed from the hold with a smile. EDI's blue beach-ball image appeared in its usual spot. "Jeff, we are approaching the mass relay. Course is charted for Illium."

Joker began working the controls with speed and efficiency. "Thanks, EDI. Let's hit it."

The Normandy neared the relay and began to draw off a charge from its substantial element zero core. A moment later, it vanished into FTL space, en route to the next adventure in store for its crew.


End file.
